Fly(skill)
You are skilled at flying, either through the use of wings or magic, and you can perform daring or complex maneuvers while airborne. Note that this skill does not give you the ability to fly. Requirement You cannot take this skill without a natural means of flight or gliding. Creatures can also take ranks in Fly if they possess a reliable means of flying every day (either through a spell or other magical manner, such as a druid’s wild shape ability). Table: Flying Maneuver DCs Flying Maneuver Fly DC Move less than half speed and remain flying 10 Hover 15 Turn greater than 45° by spending 5 feet of movement 15 Turn 180° by spending 10 feet of movement 20 Fly up at a greater than 45° angle1 20 Table: Wind Effects on Flying Wind Force Wind Speed Checked Size Blown Away Size Fly Penalty Light 0–10 mph — — — Moderate 11–20 mph — — — Strong 21–30 mph Tiny — –2 Severe 31–50 mph Small Tiny –4 Windstorm 51–74 mph Medium Small –8 Hurricane 75–174 mph Large Medium –12 Tornado 175+ mph Huge Large –16 You generally need only make a Fly check when you are attempting a complex maneuver. Without making a check, a flying creature can remain flying at the end of its turn so long as it moves a distance greater than half its speed. It can also turn up to 45 degrees by sacrificing 5 feet of movement, can rise at half speed at an angle of 45 degrees1, and can descend at any angle at normal speed. Note that these restrictions only apply to movement taken during your current turn. At the beginning of the next turn, you can move in a different direction than you did the previous turn without making a check. Taking any action that violates these rules requires a Fly check. The difficulty of these maneuvers varies depending upon the maneuver you are attempting, as noted on the following chart. Attacked While Flying You are not considered flat-footed while flying. If you are flying using wings and you take damage while flying, you must make a DC 10 Fly check to avoid losing 10 feet of altitude. This descent does not provoke an attack of opportunity and does not count against a creature’s movement. Collision While Flying If you are using wings to fly and you collide with an object equal to your size or larger, you must immediately make a DC 25 Fly check to avoid plummeting to the ground, taking the appropriate falling damage. Avoid Falling Damage If you are falling and have the ability to fly, you can make a DC 10 Fly check to negate the damage. You cannot make this check if you are falling due to a failed Fly check or a collision. See Falling Damage if you fail this check. High Wind Speeds Flying in high winds adds penalties on your Fly checks as noted on the Wind Effects table. “Checked” means that creatures of that size or smaller must succeed on a DC 20 Fly check to move at all so long as the wind persists. “Blown away” means that creatures of that size or smaller must succeed on a DC 25 Fly check or be blown back 2d6×10 feet and take 2d6 points of nonlethal damage. This check must be made every round the creature remains airborne. A creature that is blown away must still make a DC 20 Fly check to move due to also being checked. Action None. A Fly check doesn’t require an action; it is made as part of another action or as a reaction to a situation. Try Again Varies. You can attempt a Fly check to perform the same maneuver on subsequent rounds. If you are using wings and you fail a Fly check by 5 or more, you plummet to the ground, taking the appropriate falling damage. Special Familiars A spellcaster with a bat familiar gains a +3 bonus on Fly checks. Fly Speed Creatures with a fly speed treat the Fly skill as a class skill. A creature with a natural fly speed receives a bonus (or penalty) on Fly skill checks depending on its maneuverability: Clumsy –8 Poor –4 Average +0 Good +4 Perfect +8 Creatures without a maneuverability rating are assumed to have average maneuverability and take no penalty on Fly checks. Size A creature larger or smaller than Medium takes a size bonus or penalty on Fly checks depending on its size category: Fine +8 Diminutive +6 Tiny +4 Small +2 Large –2 Huge –4 Gargantuan –6 Colossal –8 Must Have Natural Flight You cannot take this skill without a natural means of flight or gliding. Creatures can also take ranks in Fly if they possess a reliable means of flying every day (either through a spell or other magical manner, such as a druid’s wild shape ability). Feats If you have the Acrobatic feat, you get a +2 bonus on Fly skill checks. If you have 10 or more ranks in this skill, the bonus from the Acrobatics feat increases to +4. Category:Skills